Romania’s first special nursing train leaves today for Vienna: Coronavirus Vienna

The first nurses to arrive are planned for Vienna, Lower Austria and Burgenland. Another train to other federal states is scheduled to follow Thursday. In Austria, around 33,000 people depend on 24-hour care. More than 60,000 people work 24 hours, most of whom come from Romania.

Europe Minister Karoline Edtstadler (ÖVP) announced on Thursday night Bucharest’s approval of the nursing corridor train. Romanian Transport Sports Minister Lucian Bode contradicted Edtstadler’s first announcement on April 23 about a first special train on May 2. Bode had said at the time that “there was no government-level agreement.” The ÖVP minister, bathed in heme by the opposition, referred to an agreement with the Romanian Interior Ministry and continued negotiations with the Transport Ministry.

Obstacles to establishing the train connection were, for example, the emergency in Romania, which lasted until May 15, and strict border regulations in Hungary. In the state of Lower Austria, in cooperation with the Chamber of Commerce, nurses attended. 231 women predominantly from Romania and Bulgaria landed at Vienna-Schwechat in late March.

The Romanian railway corridor was also organized by the Chamber of Commerce in cooperation with ÖBB. As announced by the President of the Austrian Chamber of Commerce (WKÖ) Caregivers Association Andreas Herz, the necessary information is available on the website www.daheimbetreut.at. “Specifically, reservations can be made at [email protected] by agencies and non-agency families,” says Herz.

At the moment, six trains are planned: May 10 (Timisoara-Vienna), May 12 (Vienna-Timisoara) and May 13 (Timisoara-Vienna), as well as other connections on May 20, 24 May and May 27. Each train had 300 seats reserved for placement agencies and 50 seats for individuals. Only caregivers with a valid business license can travel.

The trains are in motion at night, with four people accommodated in each compartment of the berth. This leaves two sofas per compartment free. Fever is said to be measured in Romania even in Romania. After arriving in Vienna-Schwechat, supervisors are taken to a hotel at the airport, where tests for coronavirus are carried out. All negative tests can be collected by agencies or families. If the crown test is positive, the person and the other three inmates must go to the hotel for 14 days in quarantine.

The trip costs 100 euros, the test 105 euros and accommodation at the hotel 74 euros for one night. Agencies and families bear the costs. The Chamber of Commerce and some federal states participate. For example, Styria or Burgenland.

For Burgenland, the nursing corridor train is a “very important step,” stressed Christian Illedits (SPÖ), councilor for the Socialist State, when requested by APA. 50 percent of 24-hour caregivers would come from Romania, which is why Romanian nurses are important in maintaining care. The Burgenland state had already given its consent to support families by sharing the costs.

However, an open question for him is who will pay the quarantine, Illedits said. “According to the information letter, these costs must be paid by the client, that is, the agency or the families.” These are “huge costs”. A solution must be found here that does not burden families, Illedits demanded.

The federal state of Vienna does not initially plan to pay for the temporary accommodation and testing costs of care workers who are now arriving, according to Peter Hacker (SPÖ), the office of the Vienna City Health Council, told APA. According to their own statements, the city is not active in the 24-hour care area, according to a 15th agreement that is responsible for the Ministry of Social Affairs. “If the Minister of Social Affairs wants states to continue their engagement in this area, Vienna, in any case, is ready to speak.” People who are no longer able to access 24-hour care have already received mobile care services. A total of 13,000 nursing employees work in the federal capital, which cares for 6,000 affected people.

Lower Austria is also not planning any financial contribution to costs. In the Lower Austria hotline, there are currently no bottlenecks in the 24-hour care area, said the office of State Councilor Christiane Teschl-Hofmeister (ÖVP). All inquiries could be processed in the short term in cooperation with the responsible Chamber of Commerce.

Due to the travel restrictions imposed in relation to the coronavirus pandemic, many caregivers have been working in Austria for much longer than usual. Nurses who voluntarily extended their cycle in Austria for four weeks and did not go home with their families are entitled to a € 500 bonus.

Supervisors can also request help from the Austrian Hardship Fund. The prerequisite is that you have an Austrian account and a tax number in Austria. Green Care spokeswoman Bedrana Ribo sees “unnecessary obstacles” in these conditions. Indexation of family allowances, i.e. reduction for children of Central and Eastern European care workers living abroad, was also discussed in relation to an impending nursing emergency.

Caritas President Michael Landau was delighted on Sunday with the first train in the corridor with Romanian staff caring for those in need 24 hours on Monday. Analogous to the single 500-euro bonus made possible for 24-hour workers, Landau requires a “crown bonus” for all nursing and care workers in the social sector, as he told the APA.

In early April, the federal and state governments agreed on a uniform procedure for a 24-hour care bonus for foreign workers. Consequently, a one-time bonus of € 500 must be paid to all supervisors who add at least four more weeks to their normal 14-day cycle in Austria. “I would like the federal and state governments to thank all employees in the social sector,” Landau told APA on Sunday. It is concerned with all those who care for the elderly and those in need of care, as well as those who care for people with disabilities or those in need, such as the homeless.

Landau is pleased with the creation of the corridor trains, which provide Romanian foreign caregivers with the opportunity to enter Austria via Hungary. The first of these trains is expected in Vienna-Schwechat on Monday. “The measure brings relief,” said the president, who thanked the government here. With regard to foreign care workers, Landau also calls for a rethinking of the indexation of family allowances for those affected. “Because these women have proven to be maintainers of the system in the past few weeks.”

Landau ordered the federal government to address the reforms in the nursing sector anchored in the government program despite the crisis in the crown. “I think it is important to look to the future again.” Nursing needs to be strengthened because it is “systemically important”. Older people and people in need of care would have to receive “personalized support”, for example, with a reform of care allocation. Relative care should also be taken of caring family members.

Financing had to be secured in the long term, it required “a comparable quality and a financing framework from Lake Constance to Lake Neusiedl”, mentioned the demand expressed repeatedly for the standardization of different regulations depending on the federal state . The nursing fund should also be strengthened as a central control element and extend beyond 2021. Landau emphasized that measures are also needed against the shortage of skilled workers in the nursing sector.

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